Forbes says NC city is among the top 25 best affordable places to retire in US
If you’re Mr. and Mrs. Seinfeld, you retire to Del Boca Vista. But if quirky neighbors and intense condo board elections aren’t your thing, you might choose one of the cities named by Forbes as the best places to retire.
And Raleigh, according to the publication’s new study, is among the 25 top places to retire in the U.S.
It’s not the first time the City of Oaks has made the cut; Forbes also recognized Raleigh in 2020.
Other North Carolina cities have made Forbes’ list in previous years, but this year, Raleigh was the sole representative of the Tar Heel State.
The Polk County town Tryon, which did not make Forbes’ list, was named by Travel + Leisure one of the best places for retirees to live.
Top 25 places to retire in 2025
The Forbes study did not rank the top cities, which are located on both coasts, the Midwest and the Southwest, but instead organized them alphabetically. Here are the cities that made the list:
- Apache Junction, Arizona
- Athens, Georgia
- Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
- College Station, Texas
- Columbia, Missouri
- Fargo, North Dakota
- Greenville, South Carolina
- Iowa City, Iowa
- Lawrence, Kansas
- Lexington, Kentucky
- Lincoln, Nebraska
- Madison, Wisconsin
- Newark, Delaware
- Pasco, Washington
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Raleigh, North Carolina
- Rochester, Minnesota
- San Antonio, Texas
- Savannah, Georgia
- Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Spokane, Washington
- Tucson, Arizona
- The Villages, Florida
- Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Winchester, Virginia
Many of the 19 states were only represented by one city. But a handful — Georgia, Virginia, Texas, Pennsylvania and Arizona — contain two cities that were named some of the best places to retire.
Fargo, North Dakota, is the only city that has made Forbes’ list every year since the publication began compiling the best places to retire. Pittsburgh has been on the list 13 of 15 years.
What makes these cities the best places to retire?
Cities that satisfied Forbes’ criteria for determining the best places to retire had to have a population of at least 10,000.
In addition, Forbes considered economic factors including median home prices and cost of living, comparing them to national measures. The publication also looked at state taxes, including marginal tax rates, income tax exemptions for Social Security benefits and retirement income, and the presence of state estate or inheritance taxes.
Forbes also compiled data on quality of life. Cities that had high crime rates were eliminated, and so were those with too few primary care doctors per capita. But places with good air quality and high walkability and bikeability ratings were favored.
Why is Raleigh a good place to retire?
Raleigh was noted for its:
- High number of primary care doctors
- Good air quality and economy
- “Comfortable climate”
- Bikeability
“Relatively moderate” rating on the FEMA National Risk Index, a tool that shows places most at risk for 18 natural hazards including hurricanes
- Good state tax climate for retirees
- Lack of a state estate or inheritance tax
But Raleigh is not very walkable, Forbes said, and has a serious crime rate that’s higher than the national average.
The median home price is $440,900, which is 9% above the national median, according to Forbes.
U.S. Census data shows that 11.7% of the Raleigh population is age 65 and older.
What the cities have in common
Many cities on Forbes’ list of the best places to retire house major universities. Just naming a few, Raleigh has N.C. State, Athens has the University of Georgia, College Station has Texas A&M University, Columbia has the University of Missouri and Lawrence has the University of Kansas.
All but three of the 25 cities have median home prices at or below the national median of $404,000, according to Forbes.
This story was originally published May 15, 2025 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Forbes says NC city is among the top 25 best affordable places to retire in US."
